Poem of a Six Year Old
by NaruShika-Forever
Summary: Naruto, at the age of six, has decided to retry his life. Before his 'death', though, he writes a poem to anyone who wishes to read it and know about his life. Years later he returns, and tries to change the village for the better! OOC Naruto. Being Re-done! Will not change to much... probably...
1. The First Good-bye

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and this is most definitely not how he acts. if it was then i would most definitely not be reading it and nether would you, well, probably...**

**Poem of a 6-year-old**

**Naruto knew about Kurama in this fic. at the age of 4, thank-you for the question and I hope this clears it up.**

Why?

Why me?

Why is it like this?

Why do they hate me?

Why only me?

There are others.

There are other orphans.

There are other pranksters.

There are other annoyances.

There are other children.

I don't understand.

I don't understand their reasons.

I don't understand what I did.

I don't understand why it's only me.

I don't understand the looks on their face.

They call me many things.

They call me monster,

They call me demon,

They call me Dobe,

They call me evil.

I hate the looks I get.

I hate the people that hurt me.

I hate my apartment.

I hate the color orange.

I hate this village.

I love Jiji.

I love Iruka-sencei.

I love ramen.

I love the nice people at Ichiraku.

I love Kurama.

I want few things.

I want acceptance.

I want friends.

I want safety.

I want to be free.

Thank you for reading my final words and goodbye,

Naruto

The AMBU that came for his shift found this poem on the bed and the last bit of blue flying up to the sky, blood on the ground changing color to follow it up. The man with the dog mask grabbed the letter and raced off to the Hokage. Water sliding down his face, hidden under the mask.

**Hey, im thinking about continuing this and how the Hokage feels about it, but you have to tell me to so...**

**R&R**


	2. Falling into Sadness

Re-re do! Have fun!

* * *

><p>"Hokage-sama."<p>

"Yes, Dog, what is it?" The old man looked up from his orange book. He set it down when he saw Kakashi, surprisingly without his ANBU mask and having an abnormally serious look on his face. His mask was was a little darker than normal, something that made the old Hokage curious. Plus, when he spoke, he was completely serious. "What happened, Kakashi?" A slip of folded up paper was thrust into the elders face.

"Read this." He commanded. The Hokage - ignoring how it was said - did as Kakashi told him to and read through the poem. He seemed to age an unbelievable amount of years before reaching the end.

"No..." He broke off, a choked sob escaping. "Naruto, you couldn't have..." By this time, tears were streaming down his aged face. It was a something few had ever seen, yet Kakashi was unable to notice anything but the pain he was feeling in his chest. The pain he had felt ever since reading the note for the first time. 'Naruto. Dead. Disappeared. Sensei, I failed you. And we can even hold a funeral! Dang it!'

"Hey, sensei, bad new- what's wrong?" An old man with long, white hair and red streaks coming down his cheeks came busting through the door. He paused, looking around, and then raced to the even older man's side. "Hey, what happened?" He asked, almost in a comforting tone. "And why is Kakashi of the sharingan look so lifeless? Nothing should make either of you look like this!" The only response he received was a finger being pointed to the poem on the Hokage's desk. Jiraiya picked it up and started reading. His eyes grew in size, getting wider and wider. "No way. Not him. Why? He's so... Not possible! I won't believe this! NO!" And with that, he stormed out of the room; his recently made irrelevant information on the Akatsuki forgotten.

He stopped right outside of the door, leaning on the wall just beside of it. "Why did I have to leave the kid? I was supposed to become his guardian, the one he looks up to and protects him! How did it all go so wrong? I'll never be able to make up for this mistake... the mistake that cost a young boy his life! What have I done?! Am I really worthy the title Sannin? All I do is write porn... I'm failure." The man finally left, drowning in his misery, to the place he has called home for the past six years. He didn't want to be seen in the village for as long as he possibly could. And he wasn't for many years. The two still in the room were quiet for the longest of time before -

"Kakashi, report." The grief-stricken man said in a broken voice, cracking at the vowels. His red and puffy eyes were still evident on his face. "I want to know everything you saw."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The jounin and former AMBU sounded like a three-year-old in need of comfort, something the old man was unable to give at the time. "I was going to check on him to see if there were any villagers today after I reported to you about my mission. I entered through the window like I normally do. There was swirling blue dust that then went out the window. On the floor was a puddle of blood and the poem was on his bed.. I saw a hand - one that I believe was Naruto's - lifting from the paper before transforming into the blue dust and following the trail out the window. Then the blood lifted, changing color to blue, and follow that before evaporating. I then picked up the poem and read it before I came here. You know the rest." The silver haired man had a look of wonder upon his face as he recalled what happened. He always knew the boy was pure, but never to this extent. 'He transformed to stardust, ready to be taken back to heaven. Even with such a great and powerful demon, he managed to keep his soul so pure. He was better then all of us, not even being able to hate the villagers after all they've done to him. Naruto's truly amazing.'

Flashback

It was the second time the dog masked ANBU had his shift to check in on the whiskered blond. Thinking it would be uneventful like the last time, he didn't rush to his post. That was his first mistake. When a shriek came from the direction opposite of his charge, the scarecrow decided to ignore it and continue on, thinking some other ANBU would go to check it out. That was his second mistake. When he saw that Naruto wasn't where he was supposed to be, he ran to where the scream came from. His third, since all bad things come in three's, was that - seeing the boys broken and bleeding body - he forgot to identify who all had messed with the blond. He was far too distracted by what was in front of him.

The boy looked as though he had been tortured by Anko for hours, never giving into the pain.

Blood stained his blond hair, crusting over to hold it's place. The right leg was twisted backwards so much that even an untrained civilian would be able to tell that it had completely snapped off of the rest if his body. Parts of the splintered bone glistened in the moonlight, tinted red by the blood pouring out of the fatal wound. The boys eyes were closed; a long gash passed over the left eyebrow to the bottom lip of his mouth. Kunai were left in his shoulder, arms, hands, and feet. By the looks of it, the boy was running when the kunai were in his feet, at least, it seemed like that because of the the way they had moved around. You could tell they weren't just dragged around by someone's hand. His shoulder had the newest wounds - just showing how long this had been going on. Most likely the villagers had just thrown those kunai in by the time Kakashi caught up. Clumps of hair lay dying on the now red streets of the alleyway, bits of blond speckling the red.

The AMBU looked up as he heard a call from a turkey vulture, announcing that it was ready for its soon-to-be-dead meal.

Kakashi picked up the broken boy before rushing to the hospital, hoping to save his life.

Flashback end

That was just half a year ago. Naruto lived through it and not a scare lay on his body by the time the medic-nins were done, though that's not much of a surprise considering that Tsunade had come to check in with Sarutobi and was immediately sent to the boy when they just walked through the white doors. Her and the Kyuubi made it pretty hard for any permanent scars to stay on the boy - besides the mentals one, of course.

After that incident, Kakashi asked to be allowed to watch the boy during any free time he had. And now, right once he came back from a long mission, the boy kills himself. Something had to have happened to make him do this! He always had such a great, monstrous will to live and never give up! How did he break so much as to commit suicide? Why did -

The silver-haired AMBU's thoughts were cut off by the old man. "We have to tell everyone that (choke sound) Naruto... has died. Neko!" A AMBU with a red and gold cat mask appeared from the shadows. "Find Tsunade and tell her of his death. She deserves to know. They connected the last time she came."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Neko disappeared the next second to find the legendary gambler.

"Kakashi, don't do anything rash, okay?" His voice was stronger, only a small quiver audible.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Kakashi's was completely the opposite, barely being able to make out that much sound. He drifted out of the door, giving off the presence of a lost and lonely ghost.

"Kakashi, I will announce his death to everyone tomorrow, alright? You have the next two weeks off." Though the man sounded in charge, he was very worried for the masked man. 'He has lost so much and the one thing helping to bring him back to how he was just died. Not good.' The Sandaime Hokage was only able to sigh. He knew there was nothing he could do to help.

The next few weeks passed as weeks turned into months and months turned into years. The village and it's inhabitants lost their joy during this time. Kakashi took more missions during this period, wanting to get away from the village and the memories it held and - even though many celebrated the death of the 'demon' - they stopped after a week passed. There just wasn't anything to make life interesting anymore. People no-longer heard shouting from the Hokage tower about too much paperwork or people giving chase to Konoha's greatest prankster. The people at Ichiraku stopped making miso ramen since it reminded them too much of a certain blond. Tsunade was even harder to find than before since she was always moving as to never give her enough time to think about all of her loved ones. The colors in Konoha all looked dimmer and the people felt like walking zombies and, though no one would admit to it, everyone missed the whiskered ball of sunshine and joy.

That is until October 10th, seven years later, when a young blond walked into the village.


	3. He's back

Also a revised Chapter

* * *

><p>The next few weeks passed, weeks turning into months, months turning into years. The village and it's inhabitants lost their joy during this time. Even though many celebrated the death of the 'demon' they stopped after a week passed. Kakashi took more missions during this period, wanting to get away from the village and the memories it held. People no-longer heard shouting from the Hokage tower about too much paperwork or people giving chase to Konoha's greatest prankster. The people at Ichiraku stopped making miso ramen since it reminded them too much of a certain blond. Tsaunade was even harder to find then before since she was always moving as to never give her enough time to think about all of her loved ones. The colors in Konoha all looked dimmer and the people felt like walking zombies and, though no one would admit to it, everyone missed the whiskered ball of sunshine and joy.<p>

That is, until October tenth, seven years later when a blond walked into the village.

Chap. 3

"Wow... What's up with this place? Hey, old man?" The newly arrived blonde child said as he walked into an open shop. "Why's this place look so... dead."

"The death of a child that was close to the hokage. It happened years ago but he has never recovered. He was the villages sun- even though most didn't know it at them time- and with his death, he took the light. The Hokage retired and Donzo took his place, turning this into a ninja village instead, so that there were no civilians. Everyone here has been trained to be a ninja and if you refused the training, you were either kicked out or killed. This village used to be full of life and chatter, now listen. Not even animals dare to talk under his rule." The man said 'Danzo' with disgust and the rest held sorrow in his voice as he spoke of the places problems. Plus, about the silence thing, the old guy was right. You know how, when there's silence, you start hearing crickets? Well, not even _those_ sounded.

"Wow old man... maybe_ I_ can take him down for you." The boy had a confident grin on his face as though he already knew the outcome and was just smiling at the sight of his victory.

"NO!" Shouted the old guy. At the look if a person passing by the booth, he lowered his voice to a shouting whisper. "You can't! If you try, you will never come out yourself! He'll take over your mind or your body, please don't go!" The man continued pleading with the newcomer while the blonde just looked around bored, ignoring the guy.

'Wow... to think this place ended up so terrible after I left.. oh well! Now that I'm back I can fix everything! Starting with this Donzo guy... wonder if he's really that bad.' "Hey, old guy! Where's the last Hokage? Still alive or not?"

"He's alive alright, but hasn't done anything to help us! It's like he's given up!" The man was fuming, going on and on about how the last leader was siting back and doing nothing to help.

"Where is he?" The blinds voice grew hard, not liking how this man was talking about the Hokage as well as not liking what the new hokage was doing to his village and it's people.

"The apartment complex is G7, but you'll have to ask which room." The man answered this quickly, noticing the look in the strangers eye. It was a look that only trained shinobi had after years of training and battles. The child replied with a thanks before walking away.

* * *

><p>Sarutobi walked to the door at the sound if knocking. "Coming!" He then opened the solid oak door, gasping at what he saw, or, more like, <em>who<em> he saw.

In front of him stood a purely blond, whiskered, semi-short seven year old with sun kissed skin. The blond looked up at him with indescribable blue eyes and a full smile, showing an unbearably bright light and pearl white teeth.

"Hey Jiji! I'm baaack!" The vision talked. It taunted him, making him hope for something impossible. At the same time, there was a curtain bliss coming with this particular vision, making it different then the rest... sweeter. And all the more cruel. It will disappear in time and leave him all the more broken. What god decided he deserved this kind if punishment in the first place? What had he done in a past life to make this happen?

"Jiji? Heeeelloooooo? *pause* You alive? Ojii-san?" He got up really close to the old guys ear.

"HEEEEEEY! WAKE UP OLD MAN!" Everyone in the village winced, covering their ears and remembering the kid they had pushed out. He was the only person able to scream like that.

"Gah! Naruto! Don't yell in my ear! I can hear you perfectly fine if you talk normally!"

"Ah! Finally back, huh? Glad you recognize me after seven years! That could have been a problem..." The now known Naruto looked up, rubbing the back of his head in an embarrassed manor.

"Wait... Back up... Naruto?" The blond showed a fox-like grin, eyes twinkling with mischief.

"The one and only! How've you been?"


	4. The Inbetween

REVISED CHAPTER

Word Bank

Arigatō= thank you

* * *

><p>Chapter 4<p>

"How? You died seven years ago and yet you look a year older! What happened!" The boy rubbed the back of his head again.

"Well, ya see..."

_Flashback_

_"Hey, kit, are you really sure that you want to stay? If this gets much worse..."_

_"Ya ya nii-san. I know. If it gets much worse than you won't be able to heal me. If you can't heal me then I die. You've told me hundreds of times!" The little blond boy was annoyed with the same chat over and over but was glad that someone was concerned for him._

_"Here, I have an idea. There is a way that, if the gods approve, you will be allowed to be reincarnated so you still know everything that has happened to you up until this point. After that you can come back or not, it's up to you. But also remember that if they don't like you then you just die, never to rejoin the cycle of life. It is your choice."_

_"Can I give my answer later? I don't know yet or even if there is even a remotely possible chance of me getting this privilege." The blond was semi-consurned about what would happen if he actually died._

_"If course kit. Just know that I wouldn't tell you this if I didn't think you could." The fox wrapped his tail around the boy very affectionately. "I mean, you have to be if you can make even a demon love you." The boy smiled happily at the word love._

_"Hehe.. Ya.. I guess so! So, do you think that I should? I will if you say yes"_

_"Yes, you deserve it."_

_"Okay then. What do I do. Besides, wont the villagers be happy that their 'demon' is 'dead'?"_

_Time skip_

_"Circle, blood, look, chakra, time, place, and outfit." The six-year-old checked off the things needed to complete the ritual. "That's the last thing... I won't be here for a while I guess. I'll get the poem for Jiji to read, then we can go."_

_"Alright then. And, one more thing."_

_"What's that?" The demon grinned._

_"Happy birthday." Happy tears fell from the blonds eyes._

_"Arigatō." He whispered before setting down the poem and getting pulled up to the heavens._

_End flashback_

"They decided that I was worthy and that was it! I was sent back down on the same day and ended up in a forest in, like, lightning country or something with the body of a newborn... that _was_ kinda weird, but oh well! Can't do anything about it now! Anyways, the real reason that I'm here is to figure out _why_ _you_ _stopped being Hokage_ and _stopped caring_ about what was happening in the **village**!" The boy was fuming. To him it didn't matter that they had treated him so badly, they were still just human and- to him- didn't deserve torture.

"What do you mean?"

"How can you say that? People are afraid to leave their shops in fear of getting caught about bit being trained! This Donzo guy has turned Konoha into a military base and you don't even know?!"

"Naruto, everything and everyone is at peace. I don't know what you're talking about."

'Huh, he really doesn't know.. Could it be a genjutsu?' "Kai!" He shouted as he released a large amount of chakra. "Any difference?" He looked towards the old man who was currently staring out the window, gawking.

"What's happened here?"

* * *

><p>Once again, little difference from the origanal<p> 


	5. The ANBU

_**REdone**_

Huh, so it really was a genjutsu! Well then, I guess that i won't have to beat Jiji to a bloody pulp any time soon. That's comforting… Out loud he said, "Well then Jiji, you're safe now! But I should still tell you what has been happening to Konoha."

"What? Isn't it still the same as normal?" The old man still was confused about being under a genjutsu. This may just be difficult.

"Here, Ill tell you what I know. What's-his-face, D-something has taken over. This has been going on for some time, probably a few years considering that you quit after I suposably 'died'. Everyone in Konoha has now been trained as ninja, and, if you didn't want to, you were forced out of the village or killed if you may be considered a threat in the future. Most people are afraid to leave their homes or shops due since AMBU are clearly seen anywhere you go now, scaring the pee out of everyone that doesn't expect them. If somebody is too loud then you will get yelled at or taken to jail, but that's only what I can guess because of how that person at the one stand acted.

"Everyone is wearing a ninja uniform and there were no kids running around that I could see which is weird, even in these conditions. Oh ya, also, everyone seems to hate you for abandoning them and allowing that D-person to do this, so… good luck surviving the villagers." Hiruzen seemed to age even more than he actually was, the weight of what was happening finally falling on his shoulders.

"This is what has happened? What have I done… what have you done, Donzo? Have we truly forsaken the village because of our selfishness?" He turned to Naruto after reflecting on what had happened. "Will you help me take back the village? I am sure that some are still loyal to me, even after all that I have done." The man had achieved a fierceness in his gaze that seemed to have disappeared long ago. He was ready to take back his village and destroy anyone that stood in his way. Once again acting like the Hokage that he once was, ready to lead a rebellion against the one that has wronged his village so much.

"Of course! This is still my village, no matter what happens! On, this reminds me! Can I be an ninja? Technically I'm 13, so I should be able to take the genin test! Will you let me?" Hiruzen managed a smile at the boys antics, despite everything he just heard.

"Naruto, I am not the Hokage anymore, I don't have that power to let you take the test." He said sadly.

"Oh, right… How 'bout I help you take back the village and then take the exams! That should work, right?" The old Sarutobi chuckled at Naruto. the boy truly did have a way to brighten the room, even with everything going on.

"Fine, fine. You'll be a gennin by the time the rebellion is over. Happy?"

"YES!" A passerby shushed Naruto. Naruto, of course, couldn't stand and take that. "NO! WHY SHOULD I?! THIS VILLAGE IS GONNA CHANGE AND BE THE ONE WHO DOES IT! DATTEBAYO!"

"SHUT UP, YA STUPID KID! NO ONE CARES!" And then some ANBU came to take the man away. As he was picked up, he started yelling about how the only reason he was yelling was because some 'stupid little kid' wouldn't stop yelling. Listening to what the man was saying, one ANBU turned to Naruto.

"Is this true, brat?" She questioned, KI filling the air around her.

"YA! NOTHING CAN STOP ME, UZUMAKI NARUTO, DATTEBAYO!"

"Hey brat, you should probably shut your trap unless you want to take a trip to the Hokage. Got that?" The purple haired ANBU said. Instead of listening to what the ANBU was saying, he looked towards her head. The ANBU's hair was fanning out at the top, immediately drawing Naruto's attention to it, and you never what his attention on you. Ever.

"Hey, lady! Your hair looks funny!" The blond jumped up, hands reaching for her head with his body following. Knocking her down, he played with the fan-shaped hair. She tried to knock him off but it seemed as though an invisible force was holding her down, not allowing her to move.

"GET THIS KID OFF OF ME!" She screamed. The other ANBU in her unit moved to help their teammate out of the situation, only to be forced back by the same invisible wall. The 7-year-old looked at them, mad.

"Stop." The blonds voice was cold and had an undeniable menace in its tone. "I want to play with the lady's hair." A few people in the room stopped moving, terrified of the boy's voice. The rest, more battle hardened shinobi, were surprised by how Naruto could sound so menacing while saying something so kiddish. "Okay," Naruto's voice returned to the playful little kid sound everyone had been expecting from him. "Your hair is actually really boring, so take me to this D-person!" Everyone looked to him in surprise, each one wondering how hair could be entertaining in the first place.

"You brat! Don't just go messing with a person's hair!" The purple haired ANBU jumped up at Naruto, trying to send him to the ground.

She failed miserably.

The invisible force field that was in tack before was still there. The ANBU was deflected off of it, but continued to try to break through. One of the ANBU sighed. Placing his hand on the other's shoulder, he pulled her back, away from the shield.

"Sorry brat, but we still have to bring you to the Hokage of this village." He said, still dragging Anko away.

"Okay! I got tired of dealing with Jiji anyways… plus I asked for that awhile ago but no one was listening to me..." He was talking - and whining - directly to the ANBU, surprising everyone. Naruto began to wonder what was wrong with them if a 7 (technically 13) year old was able to make them gauke. "... Well, gonna take me or what? Do ya just want to tell be the directions? That could work! Then I wouldn't have to deal with you…" Naruto looked at the silent ANBU before turning his back to them. "Um, Jiji? Do you know where the current Hokage is? These guy's aren't talking…" He said, pouting.

"Yes, Naruto, of course I know. And so do you. Remember the tower that you always had to go to just to find me? That's the Hokage tower. Understand?"

"Thanks, Jiji! See ya later! Oh ya, you should make sure that they" he motioned to the ANBU "Are okay. I don't think this is normal… Well, see ya soon, Jiji!" The kid disappeared faster than anyone could believe his tiny body could move, serving to confuse the already dumbfounded people even more.

"Fun kid… things are gonna change around here, right Tenzo?"

"Yes. And I think that they will, and for the better."

"Anko, Tenzo, lets go. We need to make sure the kid get's there safely and that that's where he's actually headed."

"Hai, Kakashi." Anko was the only one to continue talking. "When we catch up to him, help me decide on whether to kill him or just poison him, maybe beat the brat up for jumping on me, and leave him with a warning."

"Ya ya, just wait until he's talked to Danzo-sama to talk with him first if you decide to kill him."

"Hai." She sounded a little depressed at the thought of waiting before falling deep into thought about what she would do.

"Good, now let's go." And with that, the ANBU team were off, racing to catch up with a curtain blond fuzzball of joy. Well, save Kakashi who asked the former Hokage a two word question "Uzumaki Naruto?"


	6. Meeting the Hokage

_**REdone**_

Chap. 7

"Now… lets see… the raman shop was here the last time I lived here… but now it's a weapon shop. Darn it! I want raman!" Naruto fumed to himself before remembering what he was supposed to do. "And I had been able to see the tower from the place! There it is! Now all I have to do is enter..." Naruto arrived at the front and only doors into the tower. Two guards were able to be seen from the entrance, both of them being all meat and muscle. These ones were just decoys as a show of power. Many more, stronger ones were hiding in the shadow's, the way that normal ninja do.

"Hey, kid! What do you think you're doing here? This is only for customers! Its not a little midgets playground! Leave this moment!" The guard continue yelling, planning on the kid doing as he said or being scared away. He did not expect the brat to walk right past him without the mans 'highly trained ninja mind' picking up on it.

"Annoying... why was he trying to stop me in the first place? Not like I'm doing anything bad! Dang adults!"

"HEY, KID!" Ugh, not again! Just leave me alone to get to this dang Hokage! "BRAT! DON'T YOU DARE WALK AWAY FROM ME! I STILL HAVE TO KILL YOU!" OOOH! It's that crazy ANBU lady! Wonder what she wants? He turned around to face the woman with purple hair.

"Yes? How is it that I may be of assistance to you this fine evening?" A fit of giggles from both boy and woman followed that while the other men in the squad sighed with a sweat-drop showing on their heads. "ANYWAYS, what are you doing here? I did come like I said I would!"

"Ya, so?" The two continued to stare at each other before one of the teammates interrupted the display with a cough.

"Ya done?"

"... Not yet…*four seconds pass* Now we are! Right brat?"

"The name's Uzumaki Naruto! Get it right, psycho!" Everyone blinks, realizing exactly who this was.

"You mean, the kid that died seven years ago?"

"YEP! Is that weird?"

"...Yes."

"Oh…"

"Okay, enough of this silly conversation! The more important question is, 'how are you alive?!' isn't it?" Everyone turned expectantly at the enigma.

"... What?" Naruto was confused, making everyone sweat-drop.

"Aren't you going to explain?"

"No." Everyone looked at him blankly before annoyance started to seep in to Anko's gase.

"YOU LITTLE BRAT! MAYBE I WON'T THANK YOU!" The males held back an angry Anko as she tried to attack the young boy. They were only able to for a minute until she got free and charged the '7-year-old'.

"RUN AWAY!" The boy glanced at the ANBU who shouted this before saying,

"Why?" He held up a hand, stopping Anko mid-jump and sending her crashing to the ground. "She's weak. I don't even have to use two fingers." The boy continued walking, seeming to feel as though completely owning a fight against an ANBU without even trying was the easiest thing in the world. Once again, the ANBU just stood staring at the back of the blond boy. The boy walking away to meet the man who turned the village upside down in seven years. The boy that set out to change everything back to how it was.

"... Guys, he never told us how he's still alive… did he."

"Nope… maybe Kakashi knows? He did disappear after we left the third's house."

"Ya… lets find that stupid scarecrow!" Anko followed Naruto while the other two ran off to find their squad captain.

With the blond

"Now, where is this D-guy? Over here?" Naruto questioned, ignoring the people yelling to 'stop the intruder'. "Nope… This way?" There were even more people yelling to catch the brat. "I KNOW! Its this room!" The boy entered a bare room with only a desk towards the back, piled high with paperwork, and a random plant in the corner. The walls were colored red and beige with black scroll saying 'Hokage'. A lone old man was sitting behind the desk, working on some of the piles of paperwork, most likely hoping for a distraction from the mountain of destroyed trees.

"YO! OLD GUY!" The injured man looked up at the boy, not fully surprised that someone was there - there had been many assassination attempts - but stunned that it was a kid was able to get past all of his guards and into his room without his notice. Quickly, faster than one would think a man of his age could move, Danzo got to his feet and into a fighting stance.

"What are you here for?"

"Um... see, I w-"

"HOKAGE-SAMA! A little kid has infiltrated the tower and-" The guard broke off mid-sentence, seeing the boy had already entered the room.

"Yo. Were you looking for me?"

"YOU! You are the one that took all of the uniforms out of the dressing room, aren't you!" He pointed an accusing finger at the boy.

"YEP! That way, less people would try chasing me! I was just told to come to the Hokage!"

"It's true. The brat was being loud, so we told him to come here. Brat also wanted to come here, even before that.

"Anko! Why did this kid come to me by himself? You and your squad should have been escorting him!"

"He surprised us. This kid is… interesting. Show him, Naruto!" Anko pointed at Naruto, trying to get him to do something amazing. Unfortunately for her, Naruto didn't care.

"...Why?"

"Just do it." Anko glared at Naruto, causing the room to cool down just a little.

"Fine!" The kid pushed Anko back using his invisible wall before he sat on the ground, pouting.

"Hehe… told you he was strong." Anko was walking out of the hole recently made in the wall, using the sides as supports to balance herself. The two men in the room stared at both boy and woman, though Danzo looked more calculating at the boy.

"Naruto, was it? Would you be opposed to joining our rankings? We could use a shinobi of your caliber within our village. You will join a genin team as one has lost a member on a recent mission. There is an Uchiha and a Haruno. Will you enter?"

"Sure, why not? Got nothing else to do!" Danzo smiled.

"Perfect."


	7. To the Team

_**REdone**_

DING DING DING! DING DING DING! DING DIN- SMASH!

"STUPID ALARM CLOCK! WAKING ME UP!" Naruto, if you couldn't tell, hates being woken up. His alarm clock *dinged* for the last time that day, smashed to pieces by a tanned fist. "Dang it! Now I have to buy a new one! It's the fourth this week! Maybe the next one I could put a seal on to stop it from getting destroyed…" Falling deep into thought about how to improve his clocks as not to brake with one hit, he walked into the third Hokage's kitchen and sat down at the counter. "Dang… it's time to meet with the group. A banshee, an Emo, and some cyclopes. I pity the person that was on their team before me. He might even be happy he died…

Flashback

"Naruto, time to get up! You have to meet with your teammates today! It's already six!" The ANBU from yesterday shouting up to him since the ex-Hokage didn't know what was going on.

"Dang it.. maybe I should get an alarm clock? Can't have some random person coming to wake me up each morning." He got up out of the bed and walked over to his closet. Picking out one of his old t-shirt and pants that the old man just happened to keep, he put them on. "BE DOWN IN A MINUTE!" He shouted back. Hearing a grunt in response, he went to the bathroom to try unsuccessfully to get a comb through his blond hair. After finally managing to get the brush into his disobedient hair, he sprinted down the stairs to see a waiting ANBU. "Done." He called out. "Where should I go?"

"Training ground 7. I'm supposed to lead you there and make sure you don't get into any trouble. Now try to keep up." She walked to the door before moving into a jog. Though she didn't see it, Naruto grinned his famous Fox Grin. He followed her with a jog, gaining on and then surpassing her. Taking this as a challenge, the ANBU began to run after him and thus the race to training ground 7 began. The only problem was they ended up at the gates of Area 44, the Forest of Death. Naruto sent an annoyed look at his guide for getting them to the wrong place before sighing and trying to find his own way.

It didn't take long.

Naruto heard a banshee screech about something like 'Sasuke-kun! Will you go out with me?! That baka's dead! He can't get in our way anymore! Please go out with me!' It only took a few seconds for Naruto to comprehend how she said the 'baka' died, meaning that it might be one of his new team-mates. He groaned at the thought. 'Ugh, might as well check it out. If they are, damn it. If they aren't, well, no harm in trying!' And so, he speed off to the source of the skreech.

One Hour Later

'Kill me now. I beg of you Kami-sama! Anything to get away from this banshee!' Naruto yelled to the heavens in his mind as, outside of his mind, a pink haired girl screeched to a emo-teme and the teacher was no-where to be found. The only blond on the team contemplated whether or not to commit suicide or just knock himself unconscious. Luckily for him, he didn't have the chance to do either before some silver haired guy showed up with the famous orange book. The man was semi-tall with a lower-face mask and his hitai-ate covering his left eye. Glancing up, he eye-smiled at the new member of his team. Pinkie screamed 'YOU'RE LATE!' at the new-comer and he just made up some stupid excuse. Naruto wasn't paying that much attention as he was observing the man. 'ANBU? Why is he teaching genin? His chakra signature is the same as that one I had met yesterday. The caption, I think… weird.'

"Oy!"

'It would be nice to be trained by an ANBU captain though. That is, if he's good enough to teach me.'

"OY! LISTEN!"

'Should I ask him? Ya.'

"HEY! LISTEN UP BRAT!"

"Huh? Oh! Hello ANBU-san! Do you mind training me?" Naruto had a pleasant smile on face, not to big, nor too small. The rest of his newly appointed team just blinked at him before the genin turned towards their captain. Pinky was the one to start screaming at him, obviously.

"ANBU! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US! AND HOW DID THIS BAKA KNOW BEFORE WE DID! ANSWER ME KAKASHI-SENSEI! YOU COULD HAVE TRAINED SASUKE BETTER AND HE WOULD HAVE PASSED THE CHUNIN EXAMS IF YOU HAD!" As that went on, the others looked at each other, getting to know one another and tuning out the kunoichi.

After about a minute of seizing the others up, Naruto finally greeted them. "HI! My name's Uzumaki Naruto! What's your's?" One person just grunted in response as the other eye-smiled.

"Maybe we should introduce ourselves, huh? Well, I guess that I'll start! My name is Hatake Kakashi. I have many hobbies. I don't think I have a dream for the future, and I have no desire to tell you guys about my likes and dislikes. Alright! Sasuke, you're next!"

"Hn." Sasuke turned away, walking up a tree that was behind him. As he did this, he had an air of superiority and 'look up to me, I'm better then you' going on. Is he trying to impress me? Well, it's not working. I was able to do that when I was four in this lifetime. Ten if you count the last one. Maybe he won't be so annoying if I ignore him? Well, I guess it's worth a shot!

"Naruto." The cyclopes said once again as he tried to get Naruto out of his thoughts and back into reality. "How about you introduce yourself fully?" The man suggested. With a nod of 'okay', the boy started.

"As you know, my name is Uzumaki Naruto. I was a resident of this village at one time but had to leave due to certain circumstances. I am not weak in any way, shape, or form, so dont try to double cross me unless you want to die." He turned towards the silver-haired man for a moment. "I believe you can confirm that, Sensei. Anyways, I like almost everything and hate very few things. My main dream for the future is to change this village into something better where anyone can relax and not have to fear for their lives. I also have many hobbies but the main ones that come to mind are training, cooking, and finjutsu.

End flashback

Sasuke was just a spoiled brat wanting to be noticed. He was slow, weak, and set on useless revenge. Sakura was some lazy fangirl that couldn't fight, had zero stamina, and had no drive to be a ninja.

I never would have thought that a genin that has been trained by an ANBU captain for a year could be this terrible! It's just UNTHINKABLE! Naruto sighed. Just a little longer. You only have to figure out how strong that old guy is. Then you can leave this team and take over as Hokage. He thought about the other genin, hoping they actually had talent. We really need better training in Konoha. This is just too sad to watch. My eyes were cast down ward to my food, determined to forget about the sad though of how much help the village needed.


	8. A Mission

_**REdone**_

Training grounds the next day

"Well, I think we should get to know each others strengths and weaknesses, don't you think, Naruto?" 'Sensei' eye smiled at everyone. _Well, if this was a normal team, then yes. But it isn't. For one, I'm going to over through the Hokage and take over at the age of 7, there's a fangirl, the 'top of his class' is useless, and we have an ANBU captain as our sensei. The fangirl won't have much power to offer, not a chance will 'sensei' show his full power, and Duck-butt will do his best to impress everyone, but won't. For me, there aren't any weaknesses I know about other than my size. I can outrun most people, and being small can be an advantage! Hey, that reminds me, shouldn't this guy already know I'm strong? He did see some of my power that one time… Maybe he wants to know all of my skill?_ Naruto was drawn out of his pondering by a voice shrieking through the air.

"NARUTO-BAKA! KAKASHI-SENSEI ASKED YOU A QUESTION!" Naruto refrained raising his hands to cover his years, instead sending chakra up to heal them. AFter a second, Naruto turned towards Kakashi and spoke.

"Do we have to?" Kakashi and Sakura deadpanned. Sakura drew back her arm back to punch him, however, Kakashi began talking again before she was able to.

"Yes, you do. Even if you will be fine, think about your team-mates. Not knowing might cause them to attack you. It would put us all at a disadvantage." Naruto sighed. _What should I show them, then? Just chakra control and one defencive move that Kakashi already knows about? Ya, that should do it._

"Alright. I can do water walking, tree walking, and the leaf hovering technique and a time slowing barrier called Time Manipulation: Stop Movement. What?" Silence surrounded them as everyone took in what Naruto said. Kakashi was managing better than Sakura was, but that's to be expected. Sasuke seemed to have moved past amazement and was now at jealously.

"Well, it's good to know we have another strong genin on our team. Right guys?" Kakashi hid the look of distaste from his eye while looking at the older genin. Naruto decided they weren't strong at all. _Well, guess that just makes it harder._

"We only need one person on this team to make it strong! Sasuke-kun's the best there is! This baka doesn't need to be here!" Sasuke just grunted at her. Kakashi still looked irritated - more so than before.

"Umm, should we practice?" Naruto suggested. "If we don't, everyone will die on a mission in the future. Right, sensei?" Kakashi did his famous eye smile at that. At least one person on the team used his head.

"That's right, Naru-chan! Lets put you up against Sasuke here to see where you're at in taijutsu." They walked over to the center of the clearing. "Taijutsu only, no killing blows, and stop your attack when the other yields. Understood?" With the two genin's agreement, Kakashi shouted "START!" The two flew at each other. Sasuke had an arm pulled back while Naruto had his arms held up to block instead of attack. When they were within a foot of each other, Sasuke struck. One fist made it's way to Naruto's gut only to hit air. Naruto appeared behind the raven and chopped his neck once. Sasuke was out cold.

Sakura stared at Naruto in surprise before it turned into anger and her face went red. Kakashi seemed satisfied Naruto could knock him out, thinking this would make Sasuke listen more and have less of a superiority complex. Then again, he is an Uchiha. None the less, Kakashi went up to congratulate the victor.

"Well, Naruto," He started before being interrupted by a yawn.

"Eh? What were you saying sensei?" The blond had his hand up next to his mouth and big blue eyes staring up, filled with so much innocence the elder man just wanted to hug him. 'No Kakashi, bad thoughts. He's your student. Don't go that way.' The expectant eyes continued to look into his as he got lost in their depths before being pulled out by a moan of awakening from one of his other students. Silently thanking him, the silver haired man walked over to Sasuke while talking to the blond.

"I was just going to say that how you fought was impressive. You didn't have any flashy moves or wasted movement like most genin have. You were short and precise, getting what needed to be done, done. Also, you managed to do this without hurting your opponent in any way." Naruto had a face splitting grin on after Kakashi's praise and some stars in his eyes. Kakashi, loving the attention, quickly decided this was his favorite student. Sadly, the moment didn't last long as the loudest of the team interrupted, talking about how awesome 'Sasuke-kun' was and how Naruto 'just got lucky' instead of the truth. Kakashi looked towards the girl for just a moment before tunning her out once again.

Time Skip- mission

Donzo handed the mission scroll to Naruto, his most trusted genin. Naruto has quickly climbed up the ranks and gained the Hokage's trust, all the while plotting his downfall. Of course, no one needed to know this information. Smiling like he always did when in the presence of anyone he took the scroll and moved back to his team. The two genin looked at him in envy for being so trusted by the Hokage to actually get close to him while Kakashi was lost in thought.

"You will be expected to complete the mission in exactly one week. No excuses." The fifth Hokage commanded. With a 'Hai!' from all of team 7, they left quickly and headed to the gates. Under Donzos rule, a shinobi always had to be ready to go, meaning they had to carry around the packs that they normally would for a mission, just everywhere with no exceptions. This will help to get the missions done faster and more efficiently.

"Naruto, can I see the scroll?" Kakashi questioned, though it sounded more like a command.

"Sure Kaka-sensei!" The blond tossed over the mission scroll to Kakashi, still moving at the same pace to the front gates of Konohagakure. Kakashi looked it over, still running, before putting it into his own pocket. It was actually a pretty boring mission. Go here, assassinate him, steal this, deliver that, return. The only difficult part was that the person they were sent to assassinate- Gato- had a lot of money and a lot of followers. That and he might of hired some troublesome shinobi… well, if worst comes to worst, Kakashi was there to save the day.

"Kaka-sensei~! Stop daydreaming!" Kakashi looked up at his favorite student for a second before eye smiling.

"Don't worry Naru-chan. We'll get there in good time! Besides, this mission doesn't seem to hard, so there's no rush." Naruto let out a *huff* before smiling again.

"But it is Kaka-sensei! Believe it!" Kakashi noted the foreshadowing sentence and placed it in his memory. Seeing the pinkette look scared, he reassured her, thinking the entire time about how she shouldn't be a ninja.


	9. Chapter 9

_**REdone**_

Chap. 9

"Zabuza, you better not fail me. This bridge builder must be killed no matter what. If he isn't…. well, you know what happens to those who don't obey me." Gato's bodyguards moved their hands and placed them on the hilt of their swords. Sinister grins placed on both of their faces.

"Whatever. I wont fail, you don't have to worry about that. Tell your men to stand down, or I can't promise they'll be alive for much longer. Right Haku?"

"Hai, Zabuza-sama."

"Stand down you two. Now, Zabuza, you better get this mission completed soon or you won't get payed." He threatened, pointing a fat finger in the shinobi's direction.

"He'll be dead soon. Haku, lets go." The two walked out of the room, leaving Gato and his lackeys alone.

"Zabuza-sama, people will come to stop you. And they will be powerful. Even you may have trouble." Haku warned. There was just a feeling that filled his body, but a shinobi must trust his instincts. Zabuza paused for a moment, thinking over why Haku would say that. They had to be really strong if Haku felt the need to tell him.

"Yes, I know. You don't have to worry."

"Of course, Zabuza-sama."

"Alright, we should probably head over to Nami no Kuni (Land of Waves). Gato was last seen in that area and it seems that he still has business there. Remember Sasuke, Sakura, stay on guard. Gato is a very famous and rich businessman that is known for being ruthless when he wants something done. We might be fighting other shinobi or kunoichi that are much stronger than yourself."

"Okay Kakashi-sensei! But what about Naruto? You didn't say his name in the warning?"

"Hehe, silly Sakura! Kaka-sensei didn't need to warn me! I'm not an idiot!" Sakura and Sasuke glared at him. Being called idiots indirectly is not something they like.

"Well, now that that's said and done, lets get going. Come on, my cute little students!" Kakashi said as he ran off to the gates. Naruto grinned and jumped after him, landing on Kakashi's back. Sakura and Sasuke were stuck with trying to get caught up with their much faster teammates.

"Kaka-sensei? Should we wait for them?" Naruto said, placing his mouth next to Kakashi's ear. "I can't see or sense them." Kakashi considered for a moment before slowing to a stop and setting Naruto down.

"Sure, but we can't for too long. This mission needs to get done soon." Naruto considered this for a moment.

"Alright. Let's wait for a minute to see if they get back into my area of 'sight' by then. If not we'll just leave.

And so, as the two waited for the other genin to catch up, they talked. Talked about Konoha and what they've seen. Talked about their friends. Talked about experiences and their training methods. Kakashi was surprised about what Naruto had done since he left the village. Saving many people, meeting some jinchuuriki, making friends, and destroying things he believed to be bad. His training was also impressive, more intense than even Kakashi's. And his body's only seven!

During this time, Naruto also explained what had happened seven years ago at the time he disappeared. In truth, what had happened was very surprising to Kakashi. I mean, how many people die, meet all powerful beings, and come back with all your memories and alive again in the same body - even if it was younger than before. The answer was one. Well, that he knew of.

A while later - Naruto and Kakashi completely lost track of time - Naruto sensed his other team-mates.

"Sensei." Kakashi looked at him before extending his senses. Then he eye-smiled.

"It seems like our talk has to continue later, hm?" Naruto gave a quick nod in response.

"There you guys are! Where have you been? And why did you go so dang fast? And Naruto." Sakura paused to make sure everyone was listening. "You can't just piggyback on Kakashi-sensei while everyone else is forced to run!" Naruto looked at her with a confused look.

"Why? He's much faster and stronger than you two and I'm tired. Besides, I don't think Kaka-sensei cares. Right?" Kakashi smiled at the cute little blond and confirmed what he said, much to the irritation of Sakura. "Besides, if I was running I would go too fast. I'm to used to sprinting for a long time, not such slow jogging." Kakashi noted to himself that Naruto just said the speed they were going was a 'slow jog'. Though it wasn't that fast to the jounin, he was still much older and taller than the 7 year old's body.

Sasuke sneered at the blond. "Then how about you run with us for a bit." He said challengingly. Naruto seemed to think this over for a moment before asking Kakashi the directions to Nami, ticking Sasuke off a little. Once he had them he turned back to the Uchiha.

"Sure! Just try to keep up! You guys ready?" He asked. With a form of yes from everyone he started jogging - going faster than everyone else there. Kakashi debated whether or not to keep up with him or stay behind with the normal genin to guide them. He decided on the later. Naruto might know where to go, but the other two didn't. In just a minute, Naruto was out of sight and sensory range of the ambu.

With Naruto

Great. Now I can get rid of those pesky missing nin that kept trying to ambush us without worrying about the others noticing what I'm doing. Throughout the entire ride on Kakashi's back, Naruto had been creating shadow clones to attack the ronin without the other's notice. He had to dispel them before Kakashi got to that area of the path, making sure Kakashi didn't know about this helpful little ability, one Naruto would thank Sarutobi for again when they got back from the mission.

Movement to the left.

Naruto, trusting his instincts, followed the directions and pulled out a kunai. He lept out of the forest and aimed the kunai at the man's jugular.

Only to stop inches from it. The poor man in front of him was freaking out while Naruto studied him for a split second.

"... are you a civilian?" He finally said. The man could only nod yes, afraid of the kunai that was still pointed at his neck. Naruto smiled and put away the pointy weapon.

"Okay then! Why're you traveling alone? It's really dangerous!" He said, seemingly forgetting that he was the one that almost killed the old guy. Said old guy seemed to relax a little around the young boy now that he wasn't in immediate danger.

"Well, I just came from Konoha. I had gone to ask for some help to save my village but they declined. Now I need to get back and make sure my family is safe. I still need to get the bridge built. Hopefully, Gato hasn't sent someone to destroy it yet."

"Gato? That's the guy me and my team were sent to kill! We have to go to Nami no Kuni to find him since that's where he was last seen by our informants, but, after that, I can go and help you out!" Naruto said enthusiastically.

"Nami? That's my village! This is great! Thank you so much!" The old man said before offering his drinking bottle. "Here! A toast to the bridge and the death of a tyrant!" He shouted happily.

"Sorry, but I can't drink. I'm seven." Naruto said, wide eyed with a innocent tone. That's when the oldy got a good look at the young blond.

"Oh, I just thought you were short…" He paused, looking at Naruto expectantly. Naruto stared blankly for a moment before understanding.

"Oh, Uzumaki Naruto, at your service. What's your name?" He said with a little bow.

"Just call me Tazuna. So, where's the rest of your team, pipsqueak?" Naruto scrunched up his nose at the comment about his height, but he moved on quickly.

"I ran ahead of them because one of my teammates said I must be slow because I piggybacked on sensei when everyone else was running. I told them that they were just running to slow for me to stay with them and he and my other teammate didn't believe me." Tazuna nodded in understanding. "So, I don't really want to walk the entire way and you wouldn't have a chance of keeping up with me, plus it just feels weird to leave you behind, so how about this." Naruto paused for a moment, thinking of a way to fix the problem. Remembering his favorite way to carry things when he was five, Naruto created a small sheet of chakra next to him. "I just made something for you to sit on while I run. It will follow me the entire time, and lock you on to it. That way we can go fast, and you don't even have to do any work!" Tazuna seemed to contemplate the idea before coming to a decision.

"Yep, that should be fine." Naruto grinned and energy started leaking out of him - enough for even Tazuna to feel - and layered the thin sheet over and over, creating a solid enough structure.

The chakra concentrated and was actually visible to Tazuna who watched in awe as something formed out of nothing. Well, nothing that he could see.

Naruto looked at him expectantly. "Well? What are you waiting for? Get on." Tazuna did as he was told and cautiously stepped onto the solid chakra platform. "You should get comfortable. I'm going to strap you down right once you are. Okay?" Once again, Tazuna did as commanded. Naruto released more chakra and formed a blanket type thing over the drunk. Content with his work, he started jogging slowly to allow Tazuna to get used to the faster speeds before actually jogging. And then running. He didn't start sprinting because Tazuna already looked freaked out at how fast they were going. In retrospect, he shouldn't have even started running.

They reached the sea shore in just under an hour, and waited for another two for the rest of team 7.

Sasuke's face when they caught up was just perfect. Anyone could tell he was pissed. Like, really pissed.


	10. Chapter 10

Hello~ I'm back with a new chapter! Haven't done anything with this story in a long time! I promise I have a outline now, though, so it will have an actual ending and not just drop off.

Naruto Haku

Normal 12 15

Now 7 15

Memory 4 (10) 12

Should this be Naruto x Zabuza?

loretta537- they will be! It had just helped with Sasuke's superiority complex and will soon completely destroy it. Sakura... I don't have a reason yet.

* * *

><p>Last time<p>

Naruto looked at him expectantly. "Well? What are you waiting for? Get on." Tazuna did as he was told and cautiously stepped onto the solid chakra platform.

They reached the sea shore in just under an hour. And waited for another three for the rest of team 7.

Sasuke's face when they caught up was just perfect. Anyone could tell he was pissed. Like, really pissed.

Chap. 11

"How?" He hissed out. Naruto made his face completely serious and everyone expected something that was amazing. Until he said -

"Ninja." Everyone deadpanned, though Kakashi had a smile on his face for some reason - not that anyone could see it.

"Well, we'd better get going now." Naruto said. "We still have a ways to go, ne?"

"That's true, but who's this? I don't remember leaving with an old man…" Kakashi said, staring at the drunkard questioningly.

"Who, this guy? He's Tazuna." Naruto said, briefly. Everyone waited for a more detailed explanation before Tazuna finally just told his story himself, glancing at Naruto from time to time. Obviously, any ninja taller than a ten year old scared him, even without their pointy sharp weapons out.

"So you must be our 'informant' than. And you don't even have to pay! Isn't that great?" Kakashi said, sounding bored but actually trying to put some emotion in his voice. Either way, it made Tazuna happy.

"That's true! Well!" He said with renewed vigor "Lets get to my island than! I've got a bridge to build!" Sakura smiled with him and Naruto jumped up and down comically before shouting-

"LETS GO!" Then Naruto ran out, onto the water. And didn't look back until he was already a mile out. So he didn't notice no one else was following him. And had to come back.

Well, what a waste of energy.

"What the heck!" He shouted when he re-arrived at the shore.

"Ma, Naruto, these two" Kakashi pointed at the other genin "don't know how to run on water yet." Naruto pouted for a moment before drifting into thought. His eyes squinted before opening wide and lighting up.

Idea!

"Zabuza-sama, something's coming." Haku said, pointing out to the water they could see from their hideout. "It's on the water." He said, not mentioning anything else, like the trail of water being spit out behind it. Or that it wasn't a boat. Or anything else that could have been even a little important to his master. Zabuza was smart enough to figure everything out for himself.

"I see. Haku, get prepared. We have visitors soon." He let open a hidden grin. Kubikiribōchō would taste blood soon.

"Hai, Zabuza-sama." Haku gave a curt nod before turning to walk to his room.

"One more thing, Haku. Stay hidden. I want to see what these people can do. They seem interesting." Haku paused in his walk for a moment, before agreeing silently and continuing his movement. Zabuza looked out the window thoughtfully. Judging by the form of transport and the amount of people that were held on the object, the wielder had a large amount of chakra.

"Things just might get interesting." He said to the empty room before grinning wickedly. "Very interesting."

I know that jutsu… But how would it be him…? I doubt he joined Kirigakure! If anything, it would be Konohagakure, and even that is a stretch. But what would shinobi from Konoha come here? Could it be the bridge builder paid for assistance? If that's true, they don't have to kill Zabuza-sama, just protect the bridge builder. If this is what it is, I may be able to convince Zabuza-sama to abandon this job. Oh, I haven't seen Naru-chan in such a long time. I wonder how he's doing…

Flashback

It had been half a year of Haku traveling with his new companion, Zabuza. They had visited many places, taking on jobs and growing stronger - well, Haku grew stronger. There was a job that Zabuza wanted to take alone, most likely having to do with letting out steam from having to take care of a child. Because of this down time for Haku, he decided to explore the village they were staying at. Stopping outside of a shop with a large amount commotion, Haku looked in.

On the stool within the shop was a young boy with bright yellow hair. He looked extra thin for a child, more so than the normal child you would come across in the street. And yet, here he was, eating an impossible amount of raman. There were already seven bowls stacked up, and the boy wasn't even slowing down in the least. The manager seemed suspicious of the boy, obviously doubting the child's promise of money. Not that anyone could blame him.

Deciding to stay for awhile, if only to pass the time, Haku watched the child eat three more bowls before he gave a satisfied sigh.

"Thank you, mister! That was a great meal!" He said, reaching into his pocket to grab something - most likely money. Searching through a little pouch, he blinked a few times before rubbing the back of his head. "Ano… how much will this cost? 'Cause anything more than 40 ryo is too much for me…" The man growled at his customer.

"You'll just have to find a way to pay off what you owe, then. I don't care how you do it." And with a sneer, the man turned away.

Haku, who was witnessing all of this with a curious expression, walked over to the boy.

"If you would like, I could lend you some money. In exchange, I would like you to entertain me." He said with a smile on his face. The people within the shop didn't spare them even a glance at the request.

The boy studied Haku's face for a moment before his eyes lit up. "Okay! Sorry that you have to pay so much… but I'll do my best to keep you entertained!" He said, a beaming smile lighting up the area.

"Good." Haku stated, turning to the waiter and calling him over to collect payment.

"What would you like to do? Wanna play?" He asked curiously.

"Sure, I just would like some company. My master has left for a little while, and I have nothing to do. What would you like to do?" A small smile graced Haku's face.

"Well, first, I would like to know your name! Oh, and my name is Uzumaki Naruto!" Haku giggled.

"Well Naruto, my name is Haku. If you don't mind, I would like to ask you some things." With approval from Naruto, Haku began his questioning. "How old are you, exactly?" Naruto seemed to concentrate on his answer.

"Um… either four or ten… I always get confused with this question." He grinned sheepishly with one hand behind his head. Haku seemed confused by the answer, but let it go.

"Okay, well, where are your parents?"

"I don't have any! My village was attacked the day I was born, so they both died." He answered cheerfully. As Naruto excited movements continued, Haku observed the boy. He wasn't depressed when talking about why he was all alone. He didn't seem afraid of death, and didn't hate it either. The boy seemed to have a good understanding of the world, even at the age of four. And yet, he did act like a normal four year old. How that happens, Haku did not know.

"Are we just gonna sit here, or go play!" Naruto dragged Haku off to the open field next to the town and they began a game of tag. At first, Haku continuously won without much effort, but Naruto began to learn to evade Haku. He also began to speed up his running, making it more difficult for Haku. Soon enough, Haku was actually trying to catch Naruto. He was still winning their game, but it was getting harder and much more fun.

A little over an hour later, Naruto dropped to the ground and curled up to sleep. Haku giggled at the cute little boy before picking him up.

"Master won't be home for a little while. I'm sure he wouldn't mind me taking care of this boy, anyways." Haku said, thinking out loud. "My place it is, then."

Flashback end

During the week that Zabuza was gone, Naruto and Haku grew close together. In all truth, there was a good chance Naruto was the reason Haku was still soft. The thought of harming someone who may still be innocent, who might act like the young boy, stopped him from killing any children and even some adults.

I hope it's little Naru-chan! He's around seven now, I believe.

"Haku! Let's go! They're about to reach the shore."

"Coming, Zabuza-sama." Haku returned to his normal expression and tone of voice. Can't have Zabuza getting suspicious.

* * *

><p>Please tell me what you think about this story in general.<p> 


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